Summary: According to all the stories and lore, Jack Frost is alone: The only winter spirit. What the stories don't mention is that Jack, in living, had not one, but two sisters. One younger, one his identical twin, who died along with him, drowning in the unforgiving cold of sacrifice. Jack's sister was revived right along with her brother, only to be forgotten. Until one fateful day...

Disclaimer: I do not own The Rise of the Guardians, nor do I make any money from my writing.

Twins of Frost

Chapter 6: Lost

~Cathy's POV~

The nightmares are everywhere. They swarm within the air, blocking out the sky. I've even lost sight of North's sleigh. The wind catches me long before I hit the ground, but... now what? A nightmare zips past, and it's only then that I notice the colorful, feathered creatures that are trapped within the bellies of the nightmares: Tooth fairies! Tooth has ignored me in the past, yes. But she does not deserve to have her tooth fairies stolen away from her. Especially not by Pitch Black. With that thought in mind, I swing my staff at the next nightmare that passes by; it disintegrates into nightmare sand, allowing the fairies trapped within to go free. They seem dazed at first, but then dash in the direction of what I assume is the Tooth Palace. Of course, since I attacked one nightmare, the rest immediately regard me as an enemy. I manage to take down about ten before I am completely surrounded by a whirlwind of darkness. I can't see. I can't breathe. The darkness seems to crawl into every opening of my body, suffocating my very will. My staff slips from my grasp, and only one thought comes into my head before the nightmares consume me:

At least Jack is alright.

~Jack's POV~

"Cathy!" I yell, having just seen my twin be thrown off of the sleigh by one of Pitch's nightmares. I look over the edge, but I can't see her anywhere. The nightmares block my view, and I realize that some of them are chasing after what looks like tooth fairies. I grab one just before a nightmare snaps her into its greedy jaw, and lurch back into the sleigh. "It's okay, little Baby Tooth." I tell the fairy. At that moment, several more fairies fly into the sleigh, covered in a light sheen on nightmare sand. Had they already been swallowed? They how did they get out? Moments later, a searing pain shoots through my head, causing me to fall to my knees, holding my head.

"Jack, what's wrong?" Tooth asks, though she is clearly more concerned with the disaster at hand.

"It's... nothing..." I say through gritted teeth. The pain passes, and I know instantly that what I said is a lie. Something happened to Cathy. Once again, now desperate, I leap from the sleigh, and look in every existing direction, screaming Cathy's name. But she has simply vanished. I catch up to the sleigh, and sit down, fear coursing through my veins. If I'm right, and something really has happened to Cathy... I don't even want to think about it. After some time, I have no idea how much or how little, we arrive at the Tooth Palace. I am startled out of my trance when North yells back to me:

"Jack, you steer!" He carelessly tosses me the reins, which I grab, and effortlessly destroys the remaining nightmares with his swords (and with some help from Bunny's boomerang).

"Frost, look out!" Bunny yells, sounding terrified. I look forward and realize that I'm about to run into a spire. I yank the reins right, and the sleigh swerves to the left, grazing the spire, and crashing to the floor of Tooth's castle.

"This is why you don't let him steer!" Bunnymund sneers at North. "The kid's even more reckless than you are!" I don't bother retaliating to the comment. I look up and see Tooth, and her remaining fairies zipping from spire to spire, worry practically radiating off of them. Eventually, Tooth lands near North, Bunnymund, and I.

"It's gone... Everything! The teeth, my fairies! All those precious memories..." Toothiana whispers. "Well, at least some of you are still safe..." She says, looking at the remaining fairies.

"I'm... sorry Tooth." I manage to say. "We'll help you get them back." Tooth opens her mouth to reply, when a dark shadow flows through the chamber.

"Well, well, well. Look at this odd bunch we have here." It says, and then materializes on a terrace. It takes the form of Pitch Black. "A group of outcasts..."

"Pitch Black!" Bunny interrupts. "How dare you show your ugly mug here, you...!"

"Tsk, tsk. It's so rude to interrupt, don't you think?" Pitch says listlessly. "Now then, where was I? Oh right. Here you are, a lummox who delivers gifts in a sleigh, a rabbit who delivers eggs, and a Tooth fairy without any Teeth, or fairies." At that statement, Tooth draws a dagger, and charges Pitch with a battle cry. Right before it impales him, Pitch once again becomes a shadow, slithering through the room.

"Give me back my fairies, right now!" Tooth yells, exasperated.

"Now why would I do that? After all, you've just interrupted me once again. Let's see... oh? Is this Jack Frost I see, associating with the Guardians?" the shadow asks, slithering around me in a loop.

"I'm not..." I start to say, but Pitch, despite his own admonishments, interrupts.

"Oh? Well I'll just ignore you then. I'm sure you're used to that by now." The words sting. "Then again, you do get a bit more attention than that annoying girl that destroyed some of my precious nightmares earlier..."

"What did you do to her!" I screech, chasing the shadow, which stays tauntingly out of reach.

"Hmm.. what did I do with her? Perhaps, more accurately, what will I do with her?" Pitch laughs maliciously. At that moment, a nightmare rushes into the room, and within it, I catch just a glimpse of white. Cathy! I rush the nightmare, but it disintegrates, along with the shadow that is Pitch Black. As the sand blows away, I grasp at it, and the empty space where the nightmare with Cathy was, even though I know that she's not there anymore. Pitch isn't here anymore, but his voice continues to speak. "A wonderful fearling she will make, this spirit that is ignored to the point at which none have even heard her name. A wonderful fearling indeed... but not before I have a bit of fun..." The words fade out, and no more words surface. I sink to my knees, having no idea what to do. How am I going to get her back? How do you get back something that is so deeply lost?

~End Chapter~

I am so, so sorry that I haven't updated in such a long time. As of now, I promise, on my honor, that I will update at least every Saturday (when I have Internet) until this story is complete. Thank you to those of you still reviewing, and following this story. You have my gratitude. As always, I hugely appreciate any advice, suggestions, and corrections that are offered to me by wonderful reviewers :) Thank you.